Daily Gospel Reflection
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January 6, 2023
This is what John the Baptist proclaimed:
“One mightier than I is coming after me.
I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals.
I have baptized you with water;
he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
It happened in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee
and was baptized in the Jordan by John.
On coming up out of the water he saw the heavens being torn open
and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him.
And a voice came from the heavens,
“You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”
St. Andre Bessette, the first saint of the Congregation of Holy Cross, lived a life grounded in
the humility we hear from St. John the Baptist today, “One mightier than I is coming after me.”
Brother Andre, though debilitated by illness, lived a life marked by penitential practices, not unlike John the Baptist. So too, both were viewed as fringe members of their communities.
Many members of the Holy Cross community looked skeptically upon Brother Andre since he could neither teach nor perform significant manual labor. Even long after he gained the reputation as the “Miracle Man of Montreal,” many hesitated to endorse his prayers and practices.
But behind the work of both of these saints was a humility rooted in the truth that “One mightier than I is coming after me.”
John the Baptist did not jealously guard his followers but pointed them toward Jesus. Likewise, Brother Andre did not consider the healings that came from his hands and prayers to be through his intercession but through the intercession of St. Joseph.
When the sick would come to him asking for healing, Brother Andre would point them to St.
Joseph, “Go to Joseph.” St. Joseph was the one who interceded on behalf of the people for their
healing—the very same St. Joseph who humbly trusted the message of an angel and dedicated
his own life to a life of obscurity, quietly caring for Mary and Jesus.
Today we pray through the intercession of these great saints whose lives were marked by profound humility and hearts attuned to the will of God. St. John the Baptist, St. Andre
Bessette, and St. Joseph, may our lives be marked by your same humility and attentiveness to
God’s voice.
Prayer
Almighty God, on this special feast of St. André, we ask you to continue the work of this humble brother through the many works of the Congregation of Holy Cross, all those who study in our schools and worship in our parishes, and those forgotten people who St. André paid special attention to during his life. May we too be inspired by St. Joseph and the powerful words St. André lived by: Go to Joseph! May those most in need of your graces find their way to you through St. André and St. Joseph, and may the Congregation of Holy Cross be blessed with men and women to carry on the work of this saintly brother. We ask all this in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ.
Saint of the Day
St. André Bessette is the first saint from the Congregation of Holy Cross, the religious community that founded the University of Notre Dame. In the United States, his feast day falls on the date of his death, January 6, but in the Congregation of Holy Cross and in Canada, his memorial is perpetually transferred to January 7.
Alfred Bessette was born in the town of Mont-Saint-Grégoire in Quebec on August 9, 1845, and he was orphaned by the time he was 12. He had to work to support himself and had little formal education, but from an early age, he had a lively faith and a strong devotion to St. Joseph. After a few years trying to find work in the United States, he returned to Quebec, where his childhood pastor encouraged him to consider a vocation to religious life. He sent Alfred to the Holy Cross Brothers with a note that said, “I am sending you a saint.”
Upon entering Holy Cross, Alfred took the name André and was assigned as doorkeeper of Notre Dame College in Montreal. Among his many duties, he greeted visitors and tended to their needs. Eventually, many people began to experience physical healings after praying with Brother André.
His reputation began to spread. So many people flocked to see him that the Congregation allowed him to see sick people at a trolley station across the street. The crowds got larger, more cures were reported, and Brother André became increasingly well-known. Through it all Brother André remained humble, often seeming confused that people would lavish such praise on him. He knew that the real source of these miraculous cures was St. Joseph’s intercession.
His desire to increase devotion to St. Joseph inspired him to found a shrine to his favorite saint across the street from Notre Dame College. He saved the money he earned from giving haircuts at five cents apiece, eventually earning the $200 he needed to construct a simple structure. This shrine opened in 1904, and in 1909 Brother André was released from his duties as doorkeeper and assigned full-time as the caretaker of the Oratory of St. Joseph.
The Oratory attracted large numbers of pilgrims, and plans were made to construct a large basilica. Brother André’s full-time ministry for the rest of his life was to receive the long lines of sick visitors who flocked to the Oratory to see him. He became known as the “Miracle Man of Montreal”, and thousands of miraculous healings were attributed to his intercession over the following decades.
Brother André died on January 6, 1937, at the age of 91. During the week that his body lay in state outside of St. Joseph’s Oratory, it is estimated that one million people braved the bitter Montreal winter to pay their respects. The basilica was eventually completed and remains a major pilgrimage site, attracting more than two million visitors a year. The side chapels are filled with the crutches of people healed through St. André’s prayers.
The reliquary chapel on campus contains relics of Br. André, and he is depicted in statuary and stained glass in many parts of campus. Our featured stained glass image is in the chapel in the Stinson-Remick Building. The statue of Br. André pictured above adorns the front of the Eck Visitor's Center, the home of the Notre Dame Alumni Association and FaithND. His presence there reminds us that we carry out his ministry of service and hospitality to the Notre Dame family and the world. The image of the statue is from 2010 when it was adorned with wreath and garland on the occasion of his canonization. The image of the statue and relic of St. André is from the chapel in Columba Hall, the residence for Holy Cross brothers on campus. The portrait of Br. André, below, is the work of Holy Cross priest, Ron Raab, '78, '82 M.Div.
St. André Bessette, C.S.C., who was devoted to St. Joseph and who welcomed the sick with the hospitality of Christ—pray for us!
To learn even more about Saint André Bessette, C.S.C., watch this video lecture from the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame. To view, personalize, and share a digital card with a prayer to St. Andrè, click here.